Upfront Week 2011 – Rating the Networks’ Upfront Extravaganzas – Ed Martin

Given the growth in the media economy during the last year and the positive projections going forward we might have expected more than we got from Upfront Week 2011 That is to say most of the presentations last week were perfectly serviceable but with the possible exception of Foxamp8217 grand finale and an unexpected crisis at the Turner event there werenamp8217t any particularly memorable moments advertisers and journalists will be talking about next year amp8211 or next month for that matterEvery network succeeded in getting its messages across but thatamp8217s only half the battle Did they also generate excitement for their fall schedules and shows Time will tell Regardless Iamp8217d like to acknowledge the tremendous amount of work that goes into producing all of the presentations noted below Even the smallest Upfront presentation is a massive undertakingThe following is my hindsight critique of all the Upfront action In keeping with tradition each network has been assigned a amp8220Jacksamp8221 rating after a collective assessment of its overall presentation clarity of messaging program positioning star power and entertainment value5 Jacks amp8211 Excellent4 Jacks amp8211 Very Good3 Jacks amp8211 Good2 Jacks amp8211 Fair1 Jack amp8211 Poor0 Jacks amp8211 Worse than badFox amp8211 5 JacksThe weekamp8217s most engaging Upfront event served as a perfect example of a network maximizing the appeal of its existing content while seeking to excite advertisers and journalists about its future programming An opening number by new Glee favorites The Warblers followed by comments from Jane Lynch in character as cutthroat coach Sue Sylvester set the tone for the show to come which included Foxamp8217 annual parade of stars amp8220A 90second sashay that cost the network 75 first class seats and more presidential suites than a Saudi bachelor partyamp8221 snarled Sue the first appearance by the full XFactor team including a brief reunion of American Idol judges Simon Cowell Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson the latter quickly shooed from the stage and at the end a performance by seven contestants from the current season of Idol including the extraordinary James Durbin who had just been eliminated four days before along with several dancers from recent seasons of So You Think You Can Dance I expected to see a dinosaur from Terra Nova in front of the Beacon Theater where the presentation was held or at the Wollman Rink in Central Park during the party but beyond that it seemed that Fox did all it could to jazz its guestsCBS amp8211 4 amp189 JacksThere is no denying the perpetual power and polished punch of CBSamp8217 annual presentation at Carnegie Hall even if it feels somewhat repetitive after all these years Overall itamp8217s the ideal environment in which to introduce new programs and personalities Credit the unwavering energy of CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler who once again filled that cavernous venue with her boundless enthusiasm for her teamamp8217s output She was the most engaging executive on any stage at any Upfront presentation this season Introducing stars from the networkamp8217s shows in the audience rather than parading all of them on stage worked well and kept things moving The only thing missing was entertainment value something the Upfront audience has come to expect from CBS If itamp8217s too much trouble to bring in stars from Broadway musicals as the network used to do how about a song from by acclaimed award show host and How I Met Your Mother costar Neil Patrick Harris Heamp8217s usually in the houseThe CW amp8211 4 amp189 JacksAs noted in my Upfront reviews from past years The CW consistently proves that a little network can do a lot to stand out among the major broadcast players Anyone in Frederick P Rose Hall in Jazz at Lincoln Center who wasnamp8217t impressed with that kinetic opening performance by the highenergy electrohiphoppers LMFAO and a faux flash mob was probably DOA to begin with The fastmoving presentation that followed featured ample star power including Tyra Banks and the stars of The Vampire Diaries dazzling imagery on six active video screens and actual information about the networkamp8217s social media initiatives that consisted of much more than boasting about how many Facebook friends it has Two new initiatives amp8211 an online game played via Facebook called cwingo and a digital shopping experience with ShopKick will both encourage live television viewing of CW series Outgoing CW Entertainment president Dawn Ostroff bid farewell and her successor Mark Pedowitz made his Upfront debut All in all a wonderful presentation amp8211 though I canamp8217t speak for all those attendees who found themselves seated in the adjacent Allen Room which couldnamp8217t have been as exciting as being in Rose HallTurner amp8211 4 JacksThe most memorable experience of Upfront Week 2011 was the stuff of which nightmares are made A power surge at the Hammerstein Ballroom lead to multiple massive equipment failures throughout the eagerly anticipated presentations by TBS and TNT The first failure came after Conan Oamp8217Brien introduced a clip that wouldnamp8217t play amp8220You know I love working at TBSamp8221 he quipped Sitting in the audience watching Turner Entertainment president Steve Koonin do his best to keep everyone engaged as the technical problems dragged on was like being a spectator in someone elseamp8217s bad dream But Iamp8217ve got to say Koonin kicked ass under the worst possible circumstances As always the Turner networks didnamp8217t hold back on the star power Ray Romano George Lopez Jason Lee Timothy Hutton Angie Harmon Jada PinkettSmith Scott Bakula Noah Wyle MarkPaul Gosselaar and many others took the stage A touching farewell from Kyra Sedgwick and the cast of The Closer which wonamp8217t actually end until summer 2012 was a highlight of Turneramp8217s wildly unpredictable morningNBC amp8211 3 amp189 JacksNBCamp8217s Upfront presentation felt overlong and its locale a ballroom at the midtown Hilton Hotel was underwhelming but contentwise it delivered the goods The audience got to know new NBC Entertainment chairman Bob Greenblatt and get a sense of his plans to breathe new life into the beleaguered network and it was nice to see industry veteran Ted Harbert now chairman of NBC Broadcasting back on a New York Upfront stage His call for NBC to focus amp8220a little less on reinventing the wheel and a lot more on broadcastingamp8221 brought some of the loudest applause of the week from the advertising community Also NBC offered the only real surprise of the week An appearance by Donald Trump who announced that he would not be running for president and would focus instead on his reality franchise Celebrity Apprentice Throughout NBC stepped up in grand Fox style with much home grown entertainment House music from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon band The Roots a Weekend Update routine from Saturday Night Live star Seth Meyers a musical performance by Fallon and a couple of songs from Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green of The Voice Oddly NBC kept many of its biggest stars in hiding but they were at the lunch that followed All in all NBCamp8217s presentation was as highimpact as a lowkey event can beABC amp8211 3 JacksI found ABCamp8217s event to be the least interesting of Upfront week amp8211 and thatamp8217s not because I watched it online in the comfort of my home office Rather itamp8217s because ABC once again put together an event that consisted almost entirely of executives making speeches and introducing clips The only relief came during appearances by Tim Allen and Jimmy Kimmel the latter perhaps the single most valuable Upfront entertainer at any network That plays just fine when watching online but I donamp8217t think itamp8217s the right way to introduce new shows to thousands of advertisers who are being inundated with information about hundreds of new programs in one weekamp8217s time A glittering venue Avery Fisher Hall isnamp8217t enough not when the presentation delivered therein could just as easily take place in a conference room Despite my disappointment Iamp8217m giving ABC a rating of 3 Jacks up a halfJack from last year because it does what it does with confidence and assurance But I hope the network decides to step up next year because as we saw with the across the board failure of every new fall series ABC introduced last May vulnerable freshmen need all the help they can get right from the start

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Upfront Week 2011 – Rating the Networks’ Upfront Extravaganzas – Ed Martin

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